Dantrolene has bee used for the first time to save a patient with malignant hyperthermia

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Employees of the Clinical Center of Maxillofacial Plastic Surgery and Dentistry of the Moscow State Medical University named after A.I. Evdokimov have rescued a patient who developed malignant hyperthermia (MH) after the use of an inhalation anesthetic. To neutralize the reaction, the doctors used Dantrolene, which was registered in Russia a year ago.

It has been the first time that Dantrolene has been used for the treatment of malignant hyperthermia, the Federation of Anesthesiologists and Resuscitators of Russia said. A 19-year-old patient undergoing orthognathic surgery developed the reaction an hour after the introduction of sevoflurane, an inhalational anaesthetic. Upon excluding other reasons, the doctors began therapy with Dantrolene injections.

The episode was successfully stopped with 24 vials (480 mg) of Dantrolene, and the patient was discharged, having spent a few days at the hospital. According to doctors, if the clinic did not have a sufficiant quantity of the drug, the outcome would most likely be fatal, as mortality for MH is 80%. It is noted that in the preoperative period the patient had had no contraindications or features that could affect the outcome of anesthesia.

The production of Dantrolene started in June 2022 at the OncoTarget manufacturing site in Moscow. The drug is intended specifically for the treatment of MH, an acute life-threatening condition in genetically predisposed individuals, which is accompanied with impaired calcium metabolism. This condition may result in subsequent disorders leading to multiple organ failure and a high mortality rate. MH is an adverse effect that can occur with the administration of inhaled anesthetics.